We have put together this short festive quiz for you to enjoy. Its rounds all relate to York, and a trip to the city centre will help with most questions.
We ask you not to use the internet to look up answers. The only exception is those who cannot travel to the centre of York are welcome to use Google Map Streetview.
On completion please email your answers to events@fairfaxhouse.co.uk or drop them off at Fairfax House. YCT members who correctly answer all questions will be entered into a prize draw. We will contact the winner during the week c.5th January.
Competition ends: 5th January 2025, 12pm
Starter
To whom are these anonymous plaques dedicated? (3 points)
Round One – That’s Not My Church!
Correctly match these eight churches with their current uses (8 points)
The York Civic Trust has been involved with many, but not all, of these conversions.
| Church | Clue |
|---|---|
| St Sampson’s, Church Street | Sit in deck chairs and contemplate hypnotic sunflowers. |
| St Michael’s Church, Spurriergate | You won’t glaze over watching their practitioners making lampshades, windows, mirrors and gifts. |
| St Martin-cum-Gregory’s Church, Micklegate | Just for this festive period, you might be able to see Paddington or Miss Piggy in this church. |
| St John’s Church, Micklegate | Dances, piano recitals and jumble sales for the over-60s. |
| St Saviour’s Church, St Saviourgate | You can purchase a ‘Candyfloss Crush’ and ‘Woo Tu Tang Clan’ in this church |
| St Margaret’s Church, Walmgate | The only place in York you might find fossilised faeces hidden in synthetic soil. |
| St Mary’s Church, Castlegate | A cultural venue with international resonance and adjustable baffles. |
| St Saviourgate Church | Home of a mercantile grant-making group still operating in York. |
Round Two – Clock Spot
Set by Duncan Marks, Civic Society Manager
Can you work out which street the following clocks can be found? (6 points)
Clues: they are all within the city walls, on the eastern riverbank of the Ouse (ie. the Minster side) and can be seen from the pavement (including Google Streetview). Good luck!
Round Three – The 9 Doors of Christmas
Set by Duncan Marks, Civic Society Manager
Can you work out which street or property the following doorsteps (and their doors!) can be found? (9 points)
Clues: they are all within the city walls, on the eastern riverbank of the Ouse (ie. the Minster side) and can be seen from the pavement (including Google Streetview). Good luck!
Hover your mouse over the doors to reveal further clues.
Take your time with this door…
Used to be a branch of Northern Rock
Opened in the 1730s with a strong civic purpose.
The entrance to flats built in 1951 as part of the Festival of Britain
A medieval building, established for the accommodation of priests.
Grab a hot beverage in this building, previously a bank and attached manager’s house.
Territorial Army Drill Hall.
Now part of a family company, trading for over 120 years.
Some information about this house: it was built in 1860 to house York’s Poor Law Board of Guardians.
Hairdressers. Built as an inn and house c.1812.
There’s nothing very a-PEELing behind this iconic York door.
Round Four – under the streets of York
Set by Peter Addyman
a. Where is York’s famous Roman sewer? (1 point)
b. Where was the Temple of Hercules in York in Roman times? (1 point)
c. Where in York were there early Anglo-Saxon burial grounds? (3 points)
d. Who were Everard, Grim and Aesc? (1 point)
e. Where were castles built in York by William the Conqueror in 1068? (2 points)
f. Where in York were the following monastic houses (3 points):
1. St Mary’s Abbey (Cistercian)
2. St Andrew’s Priory (Gilbertine)
3. The Augustinian friary
Round Five – Miscellaneous questions
The following question was set by Roger Wools
A Civic Trust tour of one street looked at a 14th-century stone tower and a 17th-century almshouse; both were damaged in 1644 in the Civil War but restored in the 1650s. Which street? (1 point)
The following questions were set by our curator, Sarah Burnage
Which York-born artist was an early champion of York’s heritage against the modernising tendencies of the railway? (1 point)
Which leading architect was employed by York Civic Trust 40 years ago to bring Fairfax House back to its former glory? (1 point)
In which year was York Civic Trust founded? (1 point)
How many mice are there in Fairfax House this Christmas? (1 point)
a) between 50-200
b) between 200-350
c) between 350-500
Answers
Starter
- James Backhouse
- Anne Lister
- Laurence Sterne
Round One
| Church | Clue |
|---|---|
| St Sampson’s, Church Street (St Sampson’s Social Centre) | Dances, piano recitals and jumble sales for the over-60s. |
| St Michael’s Church, Spurriergate | Home of a mercantile grant-making group still operating in York. |
| St Martin-cum-Gregory’s Church, Micklegate (Stained Glass Centre) | You won’t glaze over watching their practitioners making lampshades, windows, mirrors and gifts. |
| St John’s Church, Micklegate (Jalou) | You can purchase a ‘Candyfloss Crush’ and ‘Woo Tu Tang Clan’ in this church |
| St Saviour’s Church, St Saviourgate (DIG) | The only place in York you might find fossilised faeces hidden in synthetic soil. |
| St Margaret’s Church, Walmgate (National Centre for Early Music) | A cultural venue with international resonance and adjustable baffles. |
| St Mary’s Church, Castlegate (Van Gogh: The Immersive Experience York) | Sit in deck chairs and contemplate hypnotic sunflowers. |
| St Saviourgate Church (Picturehouse pop-up cinema) | Just for this festive period, you might be able to see Paddington or Miss Piggy in this church. |
Round Two – Clock Spot
- 3 Blake Street
- Minstergate
- Coney Street
- Low Ousegate / Spurriergate
- De Grey rooms, St Leonards’ Exhibition Square
- Browns, St Sampson’s Square / Davygate
Round Three – Doors of Christmas
- Mappin & Webb, 2 New Street
- Mansion House, St Helen’s Square
- Castlegate flats, 13 Castlegate
- St William’s College, College St
- Starbucks, Coney St
- Barnitts, St Andrewgate
- Formerly the Tourist Information Office, 1 Museum St
- Femme Fatales, Fossgate
- Banana Warehouse, Piccadilly
Round Four
- below Church Street and Swinegate, entered now from a manhole in Church Street
- under the bank at the corner of High Ousegate and Nessgate where there is an inscription recording its discovery.
- Heworth, The Mount and Castle Car Park (count one point for each correct answer).
- Three Anglo-Scandinavian citizens named in the dedication stone of St Mary Castlegate church.
- Clifford’s Tower and Baile Hill.
- (1) Museum Gardens (2) Fishergate (3) Lendal.
Round Five
- Bootham
- William Etty
- Francis Johnson
- 1946
- c) between 350-500